Eden Gardens Wedding | Rikki & Christian

Eden Gardens

Moorpark Garden Wedding Venue

We had the pleasure of photographing Christian and Rikki’s wedding at Eden Gardens in Moorpark. To say it was amazing is putting it lightly. It was as elegant as it was festive! The guests were ready to celebrate & get down on the dance floor! I loved how Rikki spent months collecting all the decor for her wedding. All the antique china plates were bought thrifting here & there. Lots of hard work paid off for this wedding! We decided to interview Rikki to get more details on the wedding!

Q: What is your favorite memory of your wedding? A: Walking down the aisle and getting butterflies when I looked at Christian for the first time.

Q: Where did you get your dress & accessories? A: I got my dress at David’s Bridal.. it was an Oleg Cassini. I got my accessories at Nordstrom’s and I got my veil at a cool bridal boutique that was going out of business. It was my dream veil very old school catholic mother Teresa looking it should have been very expensive but I got it for such a great deal!!

Q: How would you describe the theme & vibe of your wedding? A: I would say it was a summer tea party theme. Lots of light pinks and champagne colors.. I tried to put an Alice in Wonderland twist to it.. My seating cards were old mail tags attached to brass keys and the table numbers were little doors with key holes my husband and I made.. I set up a croquet set on one of the venue’s lawns and incorporated it into my photos.Q: Where did you find those amazing bridesmaids dresses? A: At a store on Main Street in Ventura ( it is no longer there) but it was called Wild Planet.. They were like $35 and I took them to a tailor to have a belt that was originally attached to them taken off which cost $10.. it was really important to me that my girls could be a part of my wedding without feeling like they had to spend a fortune because that’s not what its about.

Q: What inspired you most while planning your wedding? A: Hmmm.. I just wanted everything to be light and pretty and summery.. if that makes sense LOL

Q: How did you select your venue? What was your most important deciding factors. A: My husband selected it!!! I was a little hesitant because it was kind of pricy but he put his foot down!! We wanted an outdoor venue where we could bring our own alcohol and not have to turn off the music too early and this venue met all those demands and was beyond beautiful!

Q: Your florist (Noble Four Designs) was amazing! How did you decide on the florals for your wedding decor? A: She (MyLinh Miles) was!!!! In my head I knew what I wanted, but I am not super artistic and creative and so it was hard for me to verbally convey to her my wishes. I also had a budget I needed to stick to, so what I did was I made a Pinterest board special for her and pinned pics of flowers I loved.. she took my pics and created arrangements that almost exactly matched what I had pinned and what fit in the budget we had discussed!! She was a magician!! Everything looked amazing!

Q: What made your weddings unique? A: I know everyone thinks their wedding was the best wedding ever but I KNOW mine was lol!! And I think what made it that way was really our family and friends and loved ones.. we are so blessed to have such awesome people in our life. They really made the party and really took being a part of our special day seriously! Everyone danced and partied all night! It was the best.. the feeling of love that surrounded us that day was literally tangible…

Q: What were your favorite details? A: I loved the music we picked.. every song was handpicked and meaningful.. I loved my dress and veil so much.. We bought cigars for the guests to smoke with my husband in honor of his father.. that meant a lot to everyone and was really special..

Q: What is your favorite image from your wedding? A: Have you seen Chelsea’s work?!?!?!?!? How could I pick just one LOL!! Literally every photo was amazing.. one sticks out in my mind though!! It’s actually this one picture of me standing outside of my bridal suite.. it’s from behind so you see the embellishments on my dress and veil.. it was taken after everyone had already left to line up to start the wedding.. I was waiting for my dad to come get me and I was all alone except for the photographer.. I have my vows in my hand and I could hear “November Rain” playing from the ceremony area ( one of my favorite songs and a signal to me that it was just about time to go) .. it was a surreal moment.. Really a special picture to me.. I remember it super vividly and its cool to have a picture that captured it..

Q: If you could give a bride one tip what would it be? A: Just be calm and don’t be a a jerk. LOL honestly it will make your entire process so much smoother.. a wedding is NOT about everything being perfect, or impressing people.. its really about 2 people committing their lives to each other ( cheesy I know but true!!)

Q: If you could give a groom one tip what would it be? A: Haha ummmm most likely your fiancé won’t actually want you to help with the details and prep for the wedding but at least PRETEND you want to. Offer her help ( she will probably say no) but just the offer means the world! My husband was great about offering his help constantly.

Q: What new trends do you see for next year? A: oh god who knows.. girls will be “twerking” down the aisle??

Q: What was your grand entrance song? A: “Mother” by Danzig for the bridal party, and “take my breath away” the top gun song ( verrryyy important movie to my husband hahah) for us!

Q: What was your first dance song A: “Leather and Lace” by Fleetwood Mac.. I was so blessed because 2 of my best friends, Brad and Julia, actually sang it live for us. Julia came all the way from Mexico to be a bridesmaid and to sing us our first dance!

Q: What was your father/daughter song? A: “The way you look tonight” by Frank Sinatra. I had my sister and husband join us in the middle of the song which was super fun and a personal touch. My sister adores my husband and he adores her so it was a really special part of the wedding for us!

Q: What was your mother/son song? A: We actually didn’t do one, his mom is so sweet and gave us the most beautiful speech at our rehearsal dinner but is a little shy when it comes to big crowds.

Q: If you could do it over again, what would you do different? A: I really don’t think I would do anything different! It was a perfect, love filled day.. it was really my dream wedding!!

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